WASHINGTON – After months of disputes with Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, President Trump removed him Tuesday and nominated CIA Director Mike Pompeo to head the State Department.

White House officials said a Tillerson aide was also fired for giving reporters differing accounts of how the secretary of State learned of his fate. The two officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly about the move.

The officials said they are bracing for more staff changes, citing Trump's comment Tuesday as he prepared to fly to California: "I'm really at a point where we're getting very close to having the Cabinet and other things that I want."

Tillerson, who said Trump called him hours after he tweeted an announcement about Pompeo's nomination, said his last day would be March 31, and he pledged an "orderly and smooth transition."

Trump said he made the decision on Tillerson, citing disagreements with the secretary of State that included North Korea diplomacy, steel and aluminum tariffs and the Iran nuclear agreement.

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Rex Tillerson is the CEO of ExxonMobil. His ties around the globe include a close relationship with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
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"I think Rex will be much happier now," Trump said.

Tillerson, whose voice cracked at times during a brief statement at the State Department, did not take questions.

Steve Goldstein, the Tillerson aide who was fired, said Tillerson wanted to stay as secretary of State.

As for Pompeo, Trump praised his new nominee's "tremendous energy, tremendous intellect" and said, "We’re always on the same wavelength. The relationship has been very good, and that’s what I need as secretary of State."

Trump said in a written statement that at the State Department, Pompeo "will continue our program of restoring America’s standing in the world, strengthening our alliances, confronting our adversaries, and seeking the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula."

Mike Pompeo, who was the nominee for CIA Director, rises from his seat heading to a closed session of the confirmation hearing before the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, Jan 12, 2017.
JACK GRUBER, USA TODAY

Mike Pompeo, who was the nominee for CIA Director, rises from his seat heading to a closed session of the confirmation hearing before the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, Jan 12, 2017.
JACK GRUBER, USA TODAY

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Before his departure to California, Trump said he got along with Tillerson, but they disagreed on things. Trump cited the Iran nuclear deal in particular: "I think it's terrible. I guess he feels it was OK." He complimented Tillerson for "his commitment and his service, and I wish him well. He’s a good man.”

Goldstein, undersecretary for public diplomacy, said Tillerson "did not speak to the president and is unaware of the reason" for the decision.

"The secretary had every intention of staying because of the critical progress made in national security," Goldstein said. "He will miss his colleagues at the Department of State and the foreign ministers he has worked with throughout the world."

Hours later, Goldstein was fired.

The two anonymous White House officials said chief of staff John Kelly spoke with Tillerson on Friday and Saturday about the change.

“It was clear on Friday,” one of the officials said.

The State Department said Tillerson did not speak to Trump — something White House officials confirmed — and the secretary didn't know about the final decision until the tweet.

Deputy Secretary of State John Sullivan will serve as acting secretary of State.

Mike Pompeo, Director of the CIA, will become our new Secretary of State. He will do a fantastic job! Thank you to Rex Tillerson for his service! Gina Haspel will become the new Director of the CIA, and the first woman so chosen. Congratulations to all!

In a written statement from the White House, Pompeo said that, if confirmed, "I look forward to guiding the world’s finest diplomatic corps in formulating and executing the president’s foreign policy."

In his time at the CIA, the former Kansas congressman said, "I have worked alongside many remarkable Foreign Service officers and Department of State leaders serving here in the United States and on the very edge of freedom."

Gina Haspel, deputy director of the CIA, would become the agency's first woman director of the CIA.

A 30-year veteran of the CIA, Haspel said, "I look forward to providing President Trump the outstanding intelligence support he has grown to expect during his first year in office."

Pompeo and Haspel must be confirmed by the Senate.

The administration's critics described Tillerson's abrupt dismissal as another sign of administration disarray. "The instability of this administration in just about every area weakens America," said Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer, D-N.Y. “If he’s confirmed, we hope that Mr. Pompeo will turn over a new leaf and will start toughening up our policies towards Russia and (President Vladimir) Putin.”

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President Trump has "total confidence" in Mike Pompeo, his new pick for secretary of State. Trump announced Tuesday that he fired Rex Tillerson and would replace him with Pompeo, the CIA director. (March 13)
AP

Trump’s tweet Tuesday came the day after Tillerson blamed Russia for an assassination of an ex-spy in London — something the White House declined to do hours before.

After the Tillerson announcement, Trump said Tuesday that it "sounds to me like it will be Russia based on all the evidence they have" and that the United States will condemn the Russians if the British present sufficient evidence. Trump said he will speak today with British Prime Minister Theresa May.

A former Exxon executive, Tillerson had business dealings with Russia, a source of controversy when Trump nominated him to head the State Department. A special counsel is investigating whether there were ties between Trump's 2016 presidential campaign and Russians who sought to influence that race via hacked emails and fake news.

Last Thursday, Tillerson said it would be premature for Trump to hold talks with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. That evening, Trump said he would meet Kim by May to discuss the future of North Korea's nuclear weapons program.

Last year, Tillerson said the United States should talk with North Korea, a suggestion Trump quickly shot down.

In addition to his professional turmoil, Tillerson also recently endured a personal loss. His father, Bob J. Tillerson, died Feb. 25 in Pagosa Springs, Colo., at the age of 91. The former secretary of State’s parents met at a Boy Scout summer camp in Texas and later Bob Tillerson had a nearly 30-year career working for the Boy Scouts of America. Rex Tillerson has been a longtime Boy Scout volunteer, including a stint as the organization’s national president.

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Secretary of State Rex Tillerson delivers an address to State Department employees at the State Department in Washington, D.C., on May 3, 2017. Tillerson updated State Department employees on the foreign policy perspective of the Trump administration.
Michael Reynolds, European Pressphoto Agency

US President Donald Trump speaks and Secretary of State Rex Tillerson during lunch with members of the United Nations Security Council in the State Dining Room of the White House Jan. 29, 2018.
MANDEL NGAN, AFP/GETTY IMAGES

Secretary of State Rex Tillerson holds up a Boy Scout scarf that his wife Brenda placed on him at the end of his talk at the Summit Bechtel Family National Scout Reserve in Glen Jean, W.Va., on July 21, 2017. The Boy Scouts unveiled a bronze statue of Tillerson and presented him with a flag and smaller replica statue.
F. Brian Ferguson, Charleston Gazette-Mail via AP

Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, center, Defense Secretary James Mattis, right, and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Joseph Dunford, second from right, arrive to brief members of the House of Representatives in the U.S. Capitol Visitors Center on July 20, 2017, in Washington, D.C. The Trump Administration cabinet members briefed members of Congress behind closed doors about the ongoing fight against the Islamic State in Syria.
Chip Somodevilla, Getty Images

World Petroleum Congress President Jozsef Toth, right, poses for photographs as he hands the Dewhurst Award to Secretary of State Rex Tillerson at the World Petroleum Congress, hosted by Istanbul, Turkey, on July 9, 2017.
AP

President Trump meets with Russian President Vladimir Putin at the G20 Summit, in Hamburg on July 7, 2017. A separate U.S.-Russia-brokered truce for southern Syria, brokered by the U.S. and Russia, is meant to help allay growing concerns by neighboring Jordan and Israel about Iranian military ambitions in the area. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, left, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, right, also attend.
Evan Vucci, AP

U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, left, leans in to hear a question about Syria asked of Secretary of State Rex Tillerson on June 28, 2017, at the State Department in Washington.
Jacquelyn Martin, AP

Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, left, Defense Secretary Jim Mattis and Vice President Mike Pence talk before President Donald Trump and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi speak in the Rose Garden at the White House on June 26, 2017, in Washington.
Alex Brandon, AP

Australian Minister for Foreign Affairs Julie Bishop, left, and Secretary of State Rex Tillerson take a garden walk at Government House in Sydney, Australia, on June 5, 2017, for the 2017 Australia-United States Ministerial Consultations (AUSMIN) annual meeting.
Pool photo by Mark Metcalfe

Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, center, stands with Rolling Thrunder, Inc., founder Artie Muller, third from right, and U.S. Secretary of Veterans Affairs Dr. David J. Shulkin, right, as opening remarks are delivered at the Pentagon on May 28, 2017, in honor of Memorial Day.
Cabinet members drove Harley Davidsons the full route on the 30th Anniversary of Rolling Thunder.
Paul J. Richards, AFP/Getty Images

Secretary of State Rex Tillerson mounts up at the Pentagon on May 28, 2017, to drive a Harley Davidison the full route on the 30th Anniversary of Rolling Thunder, where approximately 900,000 motorcycle riders parade through the streets of Washington, D.C., in honor of Memorial Day.
Paul J. Richards, AFP/Getty Images

President Trump listens to Secretary of State Rex Tillerson during a meeting with leaders of the Gulf Cooperation Council at the King Abdulaziz Conference Center in Riyadh on May 21, 2017.
Mandel Ngan, AFP/Getty Images

Left to right, Mexican Secretary of Government Miguel Angel Osorio Chong, Mexican Foreign Secretary Luis Videgaray, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, and U.S. Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly talk to the media on May 18, 2017 at the State Department in Washington, D.C.
Alex Wong, Getty Images

Secretary of State Rex Tillerson holds the Arctic Council chair's gavel before handing it to Finnish Foreign Minister Timo Soini, right, as Finland becomes the chair during the plenary session of the Arctic Council meeting in Fairbanks, Alaska, on May 11, 2017.
Nicholas Kamm, AFP/Getty Images

Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, left, speak to the media at the State Department in Washington, D.C., on May 10, 2017.
Jim Lo Scalzo, European Pressphoto Agency

Secretary of State Rex Tillerson stands next to the American Foreign Service Association Memorial Plaque during a ceremony on Foreign Affairs Day at the department headquarters in the Harry S. Truman building May 5, 2017, in Washington, D.C.
Chip Somodevilla, Getty Images

Secretary of State Rex Tillerson speaks as Antonio Guterres, left, Secretary-General of the United Nations, listens during a United Nations Security Council meeting about the proliferation of nuclear weapons in North Korea at United Nations headquarters in New York on April 28, 2017.
Justin Lane, European Pressphoto Agency

Tillerson, accompanied by State Department Undersecretary for Political Affairs Tom Shannon, left, takes the podium to speak to employees upon arrival at the State Department on Feb. 2, 2017.
Andrew Harnik, AP

President Trump looks on as Tillerson, accompanied by wife Renda St. Clair, is sworn in as the 69th secretary of State by Vice President Pence in the Oval Office on Feb 1, 2017.
Michael Reynolds, Pool/Getty Images

Rex Tillerson, then CEO of ExxonMobil, speaks during the 21st World Petroleum Congress in Moscow on June 16, 2014. The Senate on Feb. 1, approved President Trump's nomination of Tillerson to head the State Department.
Sergei Ilnitsky, European Pressphoto Agency

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Tillerson shake hands at a ceremony to present awards to the heads and employees of major energy companies in St. Petersburg on June 21, 2013.
Michael Klimentyev, AFP/Getty Images

Tillerson and Putin attend a ceremony after the signing an agreement between Rosneft and ExxonMobil on joint development of hard-to-access reserves in western Siberia on June 15, 2012.
European Pressphoto Agency